So here we are again! Everyone is getting excited about the events towards the end of the week in Athens (oh yes and Birmingham too possibly)!!! As promised, here are my thoughts on the songs - and this time I was stone cold sober! Well, I knew it would be a bit of a marathon, trawling through all 38 songs in one go, so made myself write the reviews - THEN allowed myself a glass or three of wine - otherwise I wouldn't have been able to read my own writing by the time I got to the last entry!
As with last year, I don't want anyone to get offended or angry at any of my comments - they are purely my personal views, good or bad. But hopefully you will find them fun and, possibly, even helpful!
ENJOY!!!
The number in brackets after the country's name is where they are placed to perform in the semi-final or, if they have already qualified, the Final.
ALBANIA (6) 'Zjarre Ftohte' sung by Luiz Ejlli
Ethnic, Turkish-sounding. Uptempo. OK, but nothing spectacular. Quite a catchy chorus, but it all feels a bit 'low' - no vibrancy.
ANDORRA (4) 'Sense Tu' sung by Jennifer
Dramatic and ballsy 12/8 piece. I quite like this, but not sure why! Catchy.
ARMENIA (1) 'Without Your Love' sung by Andre
Ethnic again. Sung in English. Toe-tapping, with quite a good, catchy chorus. I feel it will lose out because of the early performance though.
BELARUS (5) 'Mama' sung by Polina Amolova
A cheap version of Rachel Stevens (is that possible)?!!! Quite rocky. Lively video - if there is the same sort of performance on stage it could go through to Final. Didn't realise for a while that she's singing in English!
BELGIUM (7) 'Je T'Adore sung by Kate Ryan
Uptempo with a VERY catchy chorus! A big favourite with the fans already, I'll be extremely surprised if this doesn't go through to the Final - then should finish in the top 10.
BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA (22) 'Lejla' sung by Hari Varesanovic
Delicate backing for most of the song, which is nice, but a bit too 'localised' in its sound to do much, I think. Doesn't grab me.
BULGARIA (2) 'Let Me Cry' sung by Mariana Popova
Umm - no. It's not sure what it is or what it wants to do. Don't think it's going to trouble the Final! Apart from anything else, I'll be surprised if the poor girl still has a voice after three rehearsals!
CROATIA (20 in Final) 'Moja Stikla' sung by Severina
AWFUL!!! Just a load of shouting. VERY strange. Far too ethnic - of no universal interest whatsoever. Still - Croatia's neighbours will probably give them 12 points - and there are plenty of them!
CYPRUS (9) 'Why Angels Cry' sung by Annet Artani
Beautiful song. The UK should love it. Sounds like something from a musical - the traditional '11 o'clock' song (the one with most impact that people remember from a show). Stunning tune. Definitely one of my favourites.
DENMARK (9 in Final) 'Twist of Love' sung by Sidsel Ben Semmane
50s/60s style. Lively and uptempo. If this is good visually on stage, it could do well. Don't think it's a winner, but fun!
ESTONIA (21) 'Through My Window' sung by Sandra Oxenryd
Guitar hook is from 'Does Your Mother Know?' by ABBA, and she's trying to look like Agnetha! Chorus quite catchy, but a bit of a boring song overall. Sounds and looks like it's trying to be a 'typical' Swedish entry - but doesn't have that extra something the Swedes usually provide in their own contenders.
FINLAND (16) 'Hard Rock Hallelujah' sung by Lordi
Oh dear - eat your hearts out, Gene Simmons and Ozzy Osbourne! Can't really see the older generation voting for this one. Hmmm - chorus catches you by the end though, so - who knows?
FYR MACEDONIA (11) 'Ninanajna' sung by Elena Risteska
Modern and catchy. Keeps her country's ethnic sound, but manages to combine it with a more western influence as well, resulting in something that could appeal to a lot of countries. Chorus VERY catchy & in your brain once you've heard it.
FRANCE (19 in Final) 'Yoys c'est nous' sung by Virgine Pouchin
Boring I'm afraid. No drama at all - it's just A.N. Other song.
GERMANY (8 in Final) 'No No Never' sung by Texas Lightning
Yee-HAH! Nice little Country & Western song. The sort of effort that could get votes against everyone's predictions. A simple, understated song, but effective. Chorus catchy, and the singer has a lovely warm voice.
GREECE (16 in Final) 'Everything' sung by Anna Vissi
Follows the UK entry, so will certainly have impact, as the two are so different. Nice husky voice. The hot favourite, which has grown on me since I first heard it (but then again, that's typical of EVERY Eurovision song)! I still feel it would benefit from backing vocals in the chorus. Still, a very strong song that builds really well. Top 5 without a doubt, and highly possible it could be the winner. Certainly 12 points from Cyprus (ooh there's a surprise)!!
ICELAND (23) 'Congratulations' sung by Silvia Night
Britney she is NOT! What a hideous voice. The telephone bit in the middle is just excruciating. Shame, as the actual tune to the song is quite catchy! Still, if she's as OTT on stage, she may get a fair load of votes for its silliness!
IRELAND (8) 'Every Song is a Cry for Love' sung by Brian Kennedy
Typical Irish entry from the last few years. FAR too cheesy for me I'm afraid. Where's Johnny Logan when you need him? Brian Kennedy should be grateful the video isn't being shown on the night - it's SO sickly! Weak.
ISRAEL (3 in Final) 'Together We Are One' sung by Eddie Butler
Lovely Luther Vandross-type voice - shame about the lyrics. He needs backing vocalists that sing in tune though! Nice, but don't see it as a winner, and it could suffer from the early performance slot. His voice is definitely the best thing about this though.
LATVIA (4 in Final) 'I Hear Your Heart' sung by Cosmos
Sung completely acapella (without music) - VERY clever, but very exposed because of that. This should get a lot of votes for its cleverness - so long as they stay in tune! Definitely one to watch. Interesting that they abandoned the sound so favoured by the Eastern Europeans for a very Western, funky one.
LITHUANIA (18) 'We Are the Winners' sung by LT United
Er - not with this, you're not. They should be done for plagiarism as well. Last place rather than first I imagine!
MALTA (7 in Final) 'I Do' sung by Fabrizio Faniello
Typical Europop. Catchy, but don't think it's a winner. It just lacks that something special. Good chorus - with rather a strong hint of 'typical' Swedish entries again!
MOLDOVA (2 in Final) 'Loca' sung by Arsenium & Natalia Gordienco
Reggae. Another song (like the UK) with a bit of rap! Far too repetitive though - boring.
MONACO (10) 'La Coco-Dance' sung by Severine Ferrer
Sung in French. Calypso-style crossed with a dance beat. I like it! Chorus VERY catchy. If there's a good stage performance this could do well. Very happy-sounding, the sort of thing everyone will enjoy.
NETHERLANDS (17) 'Amambanda' sung by Treble
Three females with bongos and a guitar. I find this dreary I'm afraid. It doesn't stand out as anything special to me. With all those block harmonies there's a tendency to 'do a Jemini' (ie. sing off-key!) a bit too!
NORWAY (5 in Final) 'Alvedansen' sung by Christine Guldbrandsen
Quite a haunting folk song. A much more Eastern sound than their recent pop/ballad stuff. Doesn't grab me, although it's quite sweet.
POLAND (12) 'Follow My Heart' sung by Ich Troje
Another rap! However I would precede that with a 'c' to describe this song, I'm afraid!
PORTUGAL (19) 'Coisas De Nada' sung by Nonstop
Hopefully they'll look and sound a little more confident by May! Oh dear, their solo bits really suffer! Reasonable chorus, if rather predictable. This is the sort of song that would have benefited from the orchestra. Don't think this lot will sound too wonderful on the night though.
ROMANIA (12 in Final) 'Tornero' sung by Mihai Traistariu
Another Europop beat, but with a very strong vocal. This chorus has stayed in my brain since watching all the previews! A very high scorer I reckon - and a very similar song to 'Let Me Try' from last year - which did rather well (3rd)!
RUSSIA (13) 'Never Let You Go' sung by Dina Bilan
Sung in English. Good strong song with very catchy chorus. Needs a strong performance on stage - then again, it follows Poland, so should have good impact anyway!
SLOVENIA (3) 'Plan B' sung by Anzej Dezan
Good voice, shame about the hair! Not really a good draw in the semi, but then again, it may make a good impact. Strong chorus. We've heard so many like this in previous years, but then again, they're often quite popular. Could score high - by the end of the song I really liked it! Will do well in the Eurovision nightclubs! One of those songs that stays in the brain, and you can't help but get up and dance!
SPAIN (6 in Final) 'Bloody Mary' sung by Las Ketchup
Well basically exactly what you would expect from Las Ketchup - need I say more? Yes it will get votes, but it'll be interesting to hear them attempt to sing the harmonies live. The song is ok, but that's it. Quite boring actually. They've tried for 'cool Jazz/funk' but ended up with 'boring'.
SWEDEN (20) 'Invincible' sung by Carola
Good placing in the semi-final, and should have no problem getting to the Final itself. Very strong chorus, and yes, you can imagine it being sung at the end of the show as the winner. Nice and lively, in fact vibrant, which a lot of the others this year seem to be lacking.
SWITZERLAND (1 in Final) 'If We All Give A Little' sung by Six4one
Thank goodness it's first on in the Final - at least it's out of the way, then we can enjoy the rest of the show! This will probably be the next Coca-Cola commercial or something, after 'I'd Like to Teach…'. Sad thing is, the TUNE of this is actually quite good, even the verses! But it is badly let down by the words - they are just far too cheesy. Might have had a better chance votes-wise if it was being performed later in the show, not first.
TURKEY (14) 'Superstar' sung by Sibel Tuzun
D-I-S-C-O!!! May have benefited if sung in English. Not sure it will go through. It just doesn't stand out at all - too bland. Backing music has an essence of Jamiroquai, which can't be bad. Song itself is boring and repetitive though.
UKRAINE (15) 'I Am Your Queen' sung by Tina Karol
VERY modern-sounding backing, but doesn't really do anything. Very bare, and I'll be surprised if it goes through to the Final. It could just get lost amongst all the others around it.
UNITED KINGDOM (15 in Final) 'Teenage Life' sung by Daz Sampson
GREAT chorus! So catchy. Not sure if the other countries will quite get it (particularly the Eastern Europeans), but then again, Moldova and Poland have rap in them, so maybe Eurovision HAS moved on! So very different for the UK, and it could just work. It's probably the liveliest song in the show as far as energy and enthusiasm goes. Great placing in the Final as well - I seem to remember two Danish brothers having around the same slot back in 2000 - and it didn't do them any harm at all!
Best of luck Daz - as you've said, 'It's time for a change'!!!
Here's to a great Eurovision 2006, and may the best performance win! Best of luck to all the contestants -
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